Dust cloths for removing dust from a surface to be cleaned, such as a table, are generally known. Such known dust cloths are typically made of woven or nonwoven fabrics and are often sprayed or coated with a wet, oily substance for retaining the dust. However, such known dust cloths tend to leave an oily film on the surface after use.
Other known dust cloths include nonwoven entangled fibers having spaces between the entangled fibers for retaining the dust. The entangled fibers are typically supported by a network grid or scrim structure, which can provide additional strength to such cloths. However, such cloths can become saturated with the dust during use (i.e., dust buildup) and/or may not be completely effective at picking up dense particles, large particles or other debris.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a cleaning sheet that can pick up and retain dust and debris. It would also be advantageous to provide a cleaning sheet that inhibits debris buildup on the exterior surface of the sheet by providing an exterior surface that does not substantially attract or retain debris thereon. It would also be advantageous to provide a cleaning sheet that attracts debris without the use of an oily spray. It would also be advantageous to provide a cleaning sheet that retains relatively large and/or denser particles of debris. These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those who review this disclosure and appended claims.
The present invention relates generally to the field of cleaning sheets, such as for use in cleaning surfaces (e.g., in the home or work environment). More particularly, the invention relates to a cleaning sheet for collecting and retaining dust, larger particles and/or other debris.
A particle entrapment system or cleaning sheet is provided. The cleaning sheet is useful for cleaning and removing particles and other debris from a surface such as a table, floor, article of furniture or the like. The cleaning sheet may include a number of layers or sheets to increase debris retention and/or strength. The sheet may include a particle retention layer (e.g., base layer) including electret material for collecting and retaining the particles. The sheet may also include an outer layer (e.g., cover layer) covering at least a portion of the particle retention layer. The cover layer generally includes a plurality of apertures, which allow the debris to be forced and/or attracted therethrough. The apertures may make up a substantial portion of the cover layer, and may typically have a cross-sectional area of at least about 1 mm2. Examples of suitable cover layers include materials having a plurality of apertures with an average cross-sectional dimension of about 1 to about 10 mm. The cover layer is commonly formed from a low dust retention material (e.g., perforated sheets formed from polytetrafluoroethylene (xe2x80x9cPTFExe2x80x9d)). The cover layer comprises a low dust retention material and includes a surface having a plurality of apertures formed therethrough.
Cleaning utensils incorporating the cleaning sheet are also provided. The utensil may include a cleaning head adapted for coupling to the cleaning sheet. The cleaning sheet(s) may also be packaged as part of a cleaning utensil kit for cleaning surfaces. The kit may include a cleaning head adapted for coupling to the sheet and a handle adapted for coupling to the cleaning head.
A method of cleaning a surface is also provided. The method includes contacting a surface to be cleaned with the cleaning sheet. The debris from the surface to be cleaned may be drawn and/or pulled through the apertures of the cover layer and retained and/or collected by the cleaning sheet.
The cleaning sheet typically has a relatively low overall breaking strength in order to preserve a relative amount of flexibility. The term xe2x80x9cbreaking strengthxe2x80x9d as used in this disclosure means the value of a load (i.e., the first peak value during the measurement of the tensile strength) at which the cleaning sheet begins to break when a tensile load is applied to the cleaning sheet. The breaking strength of the sheet should, however, be high enough to prevent xe2x80x9csheddingxe2x80x9d or tearing of the cleaning sheet during use. The breaking strength of the cleaning sheet is typically at least 500 g/30 cm and cleaning sheets with breaking strengths of 1,500 g/30 cm to 4,000 g/30 cm are quite suitable for use with the cleaning implements described herein.
When intended to be used with a cleaning utensil, mounting structure or the like, the cleaning sheet typically has a relatively low overall elongation to assist in resisting xe2x80x9cbunchingxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cpuckeringxe2x80x9d of the cleaning sheet. The term xe2x80x9celongationxe2x80x9d as used in this disclosure means the elongation percentage (%) of the cleaning sheet when a tensile load of 500 g/30 mm is applied. For example, when designed to be used in conjunction with a mop or similar cleaning implement where the cleaning sheet is fixedly mounted, the present cleaning sheets typically have an elongation of no more than about 25% and, preferably, no more than about 15%.
The terms xe2x80x9csurfacexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9csurface to be cleanedxe2x80x9d as used in this disclosure are broad terms and are not intended as terms of limitation. The term surface as used in this disclosure includes substantially hard or rigid surfaces (e.g., articles of furniture, tables, shelving, floors, ceilings, hard furnishings, household appliances, and the like), as well as relatively softer or semi-rigid surfaces (e.g., rugs, carpets, soft furnishings, linens, clothing, and the like).
The term xe2x80x9cdebrisxe2x80x9d as used in this disclosure is a broad term and is not intended as a term of limitation. In addition to dust and other fine particulate matter, the term debris includes relatively large-sized particulate material, e.g., having an average diameter greater than about 1 mm, such as large-sized dirt, food particles, crumbs, soil, sand, lint, and waste pieces of fibers and hair, which may not be collected with conventional dust rags, as well as dust and other fine particulate matter.
Throughout this disclosure, the text refers to various embodiments of the cleaning sheet. The various embodiments described are intended to provide a variety of illustrative examples and should not be construed as descriptions of alternative species. The descriptions of the various embodiments may be of overlapping scope. The various embodiments discussed are merely illustrative and are not meant to limit the scope of the present invention.